Raw Breast Cancer Now film shares the unmet desires of women with secondary breast cancer

Directed and photographed by Katie Burdon through Academy Films, the 60-second, documentary-style spot features nine women losing the battle to secondary breast cancer. Also known as metastatic breast cancer, the condition is defined as a form of incurable cancer in which cancer cells that stemmed from the breast spread to other parts of the body.

In the film, each of the women get vulnerable about how they would spend more precious time if they were afforded it. One wishes she could see her son get married; another wishes she could tell more people she loves them.

By leveraging these stories, the charity aims to both underscore the need for more research to extend people’s lives and highlight a large part of its own mission.

“The 61,000 people currently estimated to be living with secondary breast cancer in the UK urgently need more treatment options to buy them more time,” said Rachael Franklin, director of fundraising, communications and engagement at Breast Cancer Now. “Our hope is that this cinematic campaign will shine a light on the devastating reality of this disease, on lives that will be cut short by it, and the urgent need to fund more world-class research to develop more treatment options for people both now and in the future.”

The campaign launches ahead of October, which is also Breast Cancer Awareness Month. It was developed in partnership with creative agency BMB.

Matt Lever, chief creative officer at BMB, commented: “With this campaign, we set out to showcase the reality for people with incurable breast cancer. By getting up close and personal with those living with the disease in their homes and speaking to them about their hopes and dreams, we showcase their thoughts on what they could do if only they had more time. In this way, we hope to emphasize the urgency of Breast Cancer Now’s incredible work, which can help buy people like these more time.”

The agency’s previous work for Breast Cancer Now, ‘The Chat,’ won two awards at Cannes Lions in June and has been shortlisted for five Campaign BIG Awards.

A 60-second TV spot will debut on ITV on September 25 and run for a week, followed by a 30-second edit that will run until October 22. Meanwhile, the campaign will be supported across radio, social and digital, with a long-form edit sitting on the campaign landing page. Media planning and buying was handled by AMI.

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